Skaftafell Ice Climbing and Glacier Hike

A Skaftafell ice climbing tour that puts you on a real ice wall with axes and a rope, no experience needed. Your guide teaches you the moves, then you hike among crevasses and moulins on the edge of Vatnajökull.

• Climb a vertical ice wall with twin axes and crampons, roped up by your guide
• About 3 hours on the ice, with time to try the climb more than once
• See crevasses, moulins and sculpted ice up close on a Vatnajökull outlet glacier
• Small groups, maximum 6 people per guide
• All technical gear included, plus coffee and something sweet afterwards

Your day, stop by stop

2Drive to FalljökullYour guide drives you to the foot of Falljökull, an outlet glacier of Vatnajökull.

Your guide drives you to the foot of Falljökull, an outlet glacier of Vatnajökull, and it is about a 15 minute walk from there to the ice. Before stepping on, your guide fits your crampons and safety gear and shows you how to use them.

3Ice climbingClimb a vertical ice wall using twin axes, roped up by your guide.

This is the main part of the roughly 3 hours on the ice. Your guide sets the anchor and belays you as you climb a vertical ice wall with twin axes, and there is time to try it more than once. It is physical but guided step by step, and no experience is needed.

Time here · the main part of the roughly 3 hours on iceDifficulty · physical but guided step by step, no experience needed

4Glacier walkWalk further onto the ice to see crevasses and moulins.

You walk further onto the ice to see crevasses, moulins and blue ice carved by meltwater, all part of a living outlet glacier. The ice is flat to gently sloped and you wear crampons throughout.

Walking · flat to gently sloped ice, crampons on

5Back at the baseReturn gear, warm up with coffee and something sweet.

Back at the base you return the gear and warm up with coffee and something sweet. Your guide is happy to answer questions about the glacier and the area over the drink.

About the Skaftafell ice climbing tour

This tour combines a glacier hike with a proper go at ice climbing. You meet your guide at the base in Hof, near Skaftafell, and are driven to the foot of Falljökull, an outlet glacier of Vatnajökull, where crampons and harnesses go on.

Once on the ice, your guide sets up a rope and shows you how to use twin ice axes to climb a section of the glacier wall. It is genuinely physical, so a reasonable level of fitness helps, but the guide adjusts the climb to your ability and no prior experience is needed. Between climbs you walk further onto the glacier to look at crevasses and moulins, the tunnels meltwater carves into the ice.

Skaftafell sits on Europe's largest ice cap, so conditions and exact ice features change through the year. Weather can turn quickly, and the guides decide on the day whether conditions allow climbing; hiking still goes ahead if the ice wall is not usable. Dress warm, since you spend most of the tour standing still on ice rather than moving fast.

• Waterproof jacket and trousers rental
• Hat and gloves to buy
• Cap to buy

Questions people ask